Monday, February 27, 2012

Robert Griffin III - Already Washington Redskins QB?

THIS IS JUST FUN AND SPECULATION AND TRYING TO CONNECT DOTS! NOTHING OFFICIAL FROM ANY TEAM SOURCES! A FEW FACTS, AND SPECULATION! BUT TAKE IT HOW YOU WILL!On
Saturday, there was a report that the St. Louis Rams had discussed sending the second pick of the 2012 NFL Draft to the Washington Redskins. My first thought
was filled with skepticism—this is the NFL offseason, a game of poker full of
bluffs—but then when I sat and evaluated what was going on, the poker player in
me took precedence. You never bluff a specific hand.

Well,
several things happened at the 2012 NFL Combine with the Quarterbacks that really
made the report of the Rams & Redskins discussions stand out. Firstly,
Washington Redskins quarterbacks coach Matt LaFleur was seen practically
crowding Baylor Bears QB Robert Griffin III the entire day, and not spending much time near any
other quarterback the Redskins should be interested in at all in the event that
Griffin becomes unavailable. Secondly, Griffin’s demeanor during his interview
with NFL Network’s Rich Eisen, Kurt Warner, and Mike Mayock seemed very odd.
When asked about teams who had interviewed him, RG3 skimmed through a couple
teams, laughed at the notion of Seattle trading up to get him, but then
confirmed that he had talked to Shanahan and that “it was awesome!”

Quarterbacks
rarely delve into that sort of art, and especially not a guy as witty and
crafty as Griffin. Not even Cam Newton tipped his own hand with knowledge that
the Panthers had already secured a deal with him. So my question then became, “what
does Griffin know that we don’t?”

I
recalled the article suggesting the Rams and Redskins had discussed a trade,
and it became clear [to me] that they hadn’t just discussed a trade, they
agreed upon terms to a trade with a handshake deal. The Redskins are also
rumored to have spent a lot of time in discussions with Griffin’s agent. What
makes this notion a little more [wet] concrete?

Handshake
deal done. Everything about this weekend has suggested that Washington wants to
move up for Griffin and that he is the QB they want for the future. Everything
about this weekend suggests that he is already [unofficially] their guy. Of
course nothing can be guaranteed until Griffin is selected in the draft, as the
Colts still have to select Andrew Luck; but Griffin to the Redskins seems as
sure a thing to me right now as Luck to the Colts does to everyone else.

Speculation
is still out on how much it will cost the Redskins to move up and trade
Griffin, but there’s a possibility it will cost two 1st round picks,
a 3rd and a 5th. Also a possibility of losing a 1st,
two 2nd round picks, and a 4th round pick. Whatever the
deal may be, I think it’s safe to say the Redskins may have already secured the
trade and will draft Griffin.

By the
way, for anyone wondering how Griffin did at the NFL Combine, here you go.

Height:
6'2 3/8

Weight:
223 lbs.

*40m
Dash: 4.41 [unofficially clocked at a 4.37, believes he was faster]

*Vertical:
39 inches

Broad
Jump: 120 inches [Griffin also seemed to ham the broad jump and didn't put much
effort into the burst and form, jumped very high, and still outperformed the
majority of the field]

* - Top
performer in category

Discuss
in the comments or follow me and discuss on Twitter (@Sean_Bishop).